United States of America
The United States of America was a pre-War federal republic and one of the last surviving economies in the wake of the mid-twenty-first century global energy crisis. Although mostly destroyed in the Great War, it would be preserved in spirit by many communities throughout the wastelands, most notably the New California Republic, which holds many of the same values as the pre-war US, and literally succeeded by the Enclave, the remnants of the pre-war government. History Little remains of the United States earliest historical events, though it was generally to some in the Wasteland that a Civil War had been fought from 1861 to 1865, the South against the North. Remaining historical references included the Point Lookout national park and the numerous museums and memorials throughout the US, including the mysterious and illusive former Frumentarius Ulysses, who named himself after one of the generals who lead the North during the civil war, Ulysses S. Grant. The United States would go on to be a powerhouse of economic output and progress, throughout much of the 19th and 20th century, becoming a paragon of progress and achievement to lesser nations. The US achieved many great feats, among the most impressive; sending the first man; Captain Carl Bell, in to space in the Defiance 7 capsule, though he was killed upon his return to earth, and landing the first men on the moon during the successful Virgo II lunar lander mission for the USSA. The US also went through a cold war against the USSR and the Peoples Republic of China, something which left deep impressions on the US people and spread paranoia and mistrust on both peoples from all involved nations, though the USSR and US later shared strong diplomatic relations, somthing that did not occur with China. Thinly concealed tensions became clearer during the 21st Century, the US economy was experiencing a boom, with the glut of american stores and manufacturers selling or producing newer and more advanced technology for the public of the United States. The American public welcomed advancements from RobCo, Chryslus and Med-Tek, with RobCo producing new and advanced robot technology, and personal information processors, which were resounding success with both the public sector and military sector, Chryslus Highwayman and Corvega automobiles travelling at speed down sprawling highways, and Medical advancements that helped the sick or kick drug addiction habits, even boosting mental capacity, such as Mentats. Though by 2052, the dwindling resources of the world was beginning to make its presence felt, with American households noting the steadily rising prices and the inflating market for fossil fuels and brief Nuclear exchanges in January of 2054 raising fear in the United States, setting Project Safehouse in motion, the US also began noting the rising desperation of its old communist foe, China. The United States fortified Alaska against invasion, raising tensions between Canada and the United States, though alternatives for automobiles were being explored such as microfusion and electric powered, even as early as the 2030's some companies like Executive Motors began using microfusion technology to power their automobiles, though these suffered unexplained detonations due to the still experimental technology, though the US economy still remained teetering on bankruptcy. Tensions between America and China exploded in the winter of 2066, following the introduction of stable microfusion cell technology, China invaded Alaska in a desperate bid to seize Alaska's remaining oil resources, the US defending garrison is quickly overrun and forced back to the border of Canada, where they finally halt the Chinese advance, Canada proves reluctant to allow US forces through its territory, and in 2067; the United States annexes its neighbour, announcing that the continent would be one unified state against the Chinese invaders, though Canadians viewed it as a ruthless bid for America to retain her hold on the remaining oil in its borders. The United States made many advancements in the fields of military technology, with daring men firing Nuclear war heads on shoulder mounted launchers, whilst soldiers armed with laser weaponry marched across war torn landscapes, turning foes to nothing more than ash as they advanced, perhaps the most impressive display of American exceptionalism was the invention of Power Armor technology; the earliest display of these mechanised mobile tanks was during the Alaska campaign, where the T-45d saw its first use in the field, replacing the older, more costly methods of warfare, and whilst the Chinese had their own brand of eccentric genius, which birthed the Hei Gui Stealth Suit, the Chinese were hard pressed to match the new armor. With these advancements, the United States made slow but steady advances into Alaska, and made quick work of defending Chinese Forces, and with the command of veteran General Constantine Chase, the US forces were outside of Anchorage by 2070, and in 2073, American forces had landed in the Chinese mainland, despite claims that the US forces only sought to retake Alaska. US negotiations with other world powers came to a dramatic conclusion on June 24th with the President of the United States walking out and declaring that any remaining petroleum supplies within the United States borders, would belong to the United States. In June of 2076, the final icon of American ingenuity and exceptionalism is created; the T-51b is the pinnacle of American power armor technology. By January 10th of 2077, the US forces under General Chase had reclaimed Anchorage, and pushed Chinese forces from the Alaska, with war weary American citizens hoping that the overt conflicts in the pacific would soon be over. The belief was shared by some American companies, such as Nuka Cola who began shipping a new product; Nuka Cola Quantum around the country, and the new Virtual Reality Simulation of the Anchorage reclamation goes underway, with General Constantine Chase taking a deep interest in the progress of the Simulation, and a new airborne unit was in the prototype stages; the VB-02 Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) craft, codenamed 'Vertibird', was to enter military as a tilt-wing aircraft, due in 2085. On October 23rd of 2077, the Great War annihilated the United States, with little knowledge of the United States government being left over from before the War. The American Commonwealths Prior to the Great War in 2077, the United States had an intermediate level of government between the 50 states and the federal government. The nation was divided into 13 commonwealths sometime after World War II ended in 1945 but before the Virgo II mission landed Americans on the Moon in July 1969. The United States flag was changed as well to reflect the new political reality. Accordingly, the new flag depicted fourteen stars - thirteen in a circle to represent the commonwealths and one in the middle to represent the federal government and the nation as a whole It was hoped that the new administrative division of the country would help create legislation broad enough to benefit those states with common regional concerns, but narrow enough not to affect those states with dissimilar interests or political cultures, which would help the nation better meet the challenges posed by the Communist threat to American democracy. In reality, it created even more political strife in the American government, as commonwealths typically did everything they could to promote their own interests at the expense of other commonwealths. The thirteen American commonwealths were: